A controversy sent X users into a frenzy on May 29, 2024, when user @NobodymrRobert posted that actor and filmmaker Kevin Costner had fired Robert De Niro from an upcoming project, calling the Oscar-winning actor “disrespectful.” The post spread like wildfire on the social media platform, only for netizens to discover the update was a satirical piece by America’s Last Line of Defense (ALLOD), targeted toward politically conservative voters.
We’re debunking the Robert De Niro vs. Kevin Costner viral rumor in great detail below. Have a look!
Did Kevin Costner fire Robert De Niro? — Fact-Checking!
It all started with a Facebook post that included a meme and a caption alleging that De Niro had been fired from a gig that would have made him at least $30 million. The Reagan Was Right Facebook page—a subset of America’s Last Line of Defense (ALLOD) network—first uploaded the post.
The network is notorious for creating satirical and highly convincing parody content. The meme referenced De Niro’s recent appearance outside the lower Manhattan courthouse, where former U.S. president Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial took place.
The Facebook post had a satire label on its lower-left corner. It claimed that De Niro’s behavior prompted Costner to fire him. It also claimed that De Niro was ousted from the non-existent Costner project because of remarks made during the public appearance set up by President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign.
The text noted that Costner was not in favor of the “negativity” De Niro’s actions brought on set. Another ALLOD page posted a similar version of the meme. Despite the post carrying the satire label, many X users fell for the gimmick, believing it to be true and sharing it in large numbers.
Jordan Liles, a reporter for Snopes, clarified that the rumor was fabricated and satirical in nature. Enough with the fake, sensationalized posts and rumors! Have a look at what Costner and De Niro are really up to on their respective work fronts.
Kevin Costner is working on his passion project Horizon — De Niro is soon to be seen in Alto Knights
Kevin Costner recently received a 10-minute standing ovation at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival for Horizon: An American Saga, the first installment of his three-part passion project. The gesture, at such a big platform, needless to say, made Costner emotional. He said he would “never forget” his experience at the film showcase.
Set to arrive in theaters as Horizon: An American Saga Chapter One and Chapter Two on June 28 and August 16 respectively, the flicks chronicle the Civil War expansion and settlement of the American West, per Warner Bros. Pictures.
De Niro, for his part, will see the audience in the theater in 2025 with the premiere of Alto Knights, in which Gangster Vito Genovese goes to war with crime boss Frank Costello in 1950. The actor was last seen in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon.
